johnson



(NoModeL) F. G. JOHNSON.

Barrel Head.

No. 238,397. Patented March 1,1881.

WITNESSES INVENTOR N. PETERS, PHD? UNITED STATES PATENT Gamma FRANK G.JOHNSON, OF BROOKLYN, "NEW YORK.

BARREL-HEAD.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 238,397, dated March 1,1881. Application filed July 28, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK G. J OHNSON, of the city of Brooklyn, in thecounty of Kings and State ofNewYork,haveinvented anew and usefulImprovement in Barrel-Heads, which improvement is fully set forth in thefollowing specification, reference being had to the accompanyings.

The object of my invention is to provide barrel-heads constructed insuch a peculiar manner that they can be readily contracted and expandedin diameter, and thereby be easily removed from or securely fastenedinto the chine of any barrel of suitable size without removing any ofthe hoops of the barrel.

Heads made by myinvention are intended for barrels employed for packingand transporting eggs, fruits, vegetables, and such other articles as donot require to be packed in closelyfitted cases, but which are oftenbetter preserved by being packed in partially-open cases, for thepurpose of ventilation.

The construction and operation of my invention are more particularlydescribed as follows:

Figure 1 illustrates a horizontal or face View of one of my improvedbarrelheads, and Fig. 2 a vertical section cut through the line x 00 ofFig. l.

A A represent a transverse section of a barrel with the three end hoops,h h, opposite to the head.

B B are two half-heads, the curved or outer edges of which are beveleddown to fit in the groove of the chine in the usual manner. The centralor inner edges of these half-heads are peculiarly formed, both beingformed alike. This central edge of each half-head is cut away more atthe central than at the outer portion, so that when the two halves areadjacently placed together, as in Fig. l, the space between them will bemore or less tapering, the space being the widest at the central part ofthe head and the narrowest at the outer portion, I) b. The combinedwidth or diameter of these two halves or half-heads in the direction ofthe line a; 00, Fig. 1, is slightly less than the diameter of thebarrel, so that when the inner edges come together at the outer points,I) b, Fig. 1, the head becomes contracted in the direction of the line00 w snfficiently to be placed in the groove of the chine withoutremoving the hoops h h to expand the barrel. To contract the opposite ortransverse diameter of the half-heads, so as to be able to insert theminto the groove without expanding the barrel, I round oft or cut away asmall portion of the corners of the half-heads at b b, Fig. 1. Byconstructing these two half-heads as above described they can be readilyinserted into the groove of the chine of a barrel without removing thehoops or expanding the barrel. To force these half-heads into the grooveof the chine and firmly lock and fasten the head in the barrel, I employ two wedge-shaped keys, D D, made alike, having the same bevel asthe space between the lialf-sections of the head. To prevent these keysfrom dropping out of place, and to guide them, and for convenience ofplacing them between the half-heads, I provide a double flange at topand bottom of the body of the key, as shown at D, Fig. 2. To enable meto insert the keys D D between the half-heads and enter them into thetapering space I) b, I cut away a small portion of the central part ofthe half-heads, as shown at 0, Fig. 1, just sufficient to insert the keywhen the halfheads come into adjacent contact at the points 0 b, Fig. 1.

Although the corners of the half-heads are partially cut away at b b,which would seem to diminish the strength of the head, yet the head isreally stronger than those usually employed,for the reason that theupper and lower flanges of the keys D D combine the two halfheadstogether in such a manner that any strain put upon one half of the headis sustained, in part, by the other half, and this, too, at the centralpart of thehead, where the head of a barrel is necessarily the weakest.

The operation of my invention is described briefly, thus: Havinginserted the two halfheads B B into the groove of the barrel A A, thetwo keys, D D, which I term fasteningkeys, are passed into the opening 0and inserted into the tapering space 11 b by means of the hand, whichwill expand the head and secure it quite firmly in the barrel. To secureit more firmly, and, in fact, to fasten the head into the barrel moresecurely than is possible by the ordinary means, it is only necessary todrive these two keys D D with a hammer a suitable distance from thecentral toward the outer portion of the barrel. To remove the head fromthe barrel it is only necessary to drive the fastening-keys D D back tothe central opening, 0, when the half-heads B B can be brought togetherand readily removed from the groove in the chine and taken out of thebarrel.

With such a head as this ventilation is secured through the entirelength and contents of the barrel.

The contraction of the diameter of a barrel by means of driving down thehoops to bind the head is limited bythe staves, so that if the head, asordinarily employed, be a little too small it cannot be firmly bound bythe hoops; but by means of my invention the expansion of the head is notso limited but that it can be expanded to the required size for securinga firm fastening of the head. By means of my invention, in cases wheresuch a head may be employed, all cooperage is obviated, which saveslabor and destruction necessarily involved in the usual manner ofremoving and inserting barrel-heads.

I am aware that expanding and contracting barrel-heads have heretoforebeen made, as, for instance, a patent for such a head was granted to meDecember 23, 1879; but

What I claim in the above-described improvement as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

A ventilating adjustable barrel-head, consisting of two half-sections ofa circle equal and similar in size and shape, B B, with their adjacentedges set apart from and inclined toward each other, forming taperingspaces I) 1) between the said sections, and having the corners b 1)partially rounded and cut away, in combination with the tastening-keys DD, substantially in the manner and for the purposes described.

FRANK G. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

W T. FARNHAM, DAVID S. DUNGOMB.

